Joanne Froggatt: 'Downton Abbey has upped its game'

Joanne Froggatt has revealed 'Downton Abbey' has "upped its game" in its fourth series, which is due to air later this year, and praised the show's "fantastic" scripts

Joanne Froggatt says 'Downton Abbey' has "upped its game".

The 32-year-old actress - who plays lady's maid Anna Bates in the hit ITV period drama - has revealed viewers can expect even more exciting twists and turns when the show returns for its fourth series later this year and thinks the latest scripts are some of show creator Julian Fellowes' best work.

Speaking exclusively to BANG Showbiz at the Jameson Empire Done in 60 Seconds global final in London, she said: "We've just started filming the fourth season. We've been filming for about a month so we've got a long way to go.

"I'm really excited about it. I think this year, the scripts are really, really fantastic. I think it's upped its game again. There's certainly quite a few surprises this year. Hopefully people will love it!"

The fourth series of 'Downton' will see plenty of change as heartthrob Matthew Crawley, played by Dan Stevens, was killed off in last year's Christmas special. Meanwhile, Siobhan Finneran - who played devious maid Sarah O'Brien - announced her departure from the show earlier this month.

Joanne served as one of the judges for the Jameson Empire Done in 60 Seconds competition - which sees amateur filmmakers recreate beloved films in just one minute - along with acclaimed British actor and the competition's ambassador, Tom Hiddleston, Alex Zane, Edith Bowman, Empire magazine editor Mark Dinning and Bauer Media CEO, Paul Keenan.

She said of the entries: "It's amazing what you can actually do in 60 seconds. To even tell a story that as an audience you already know, to do it in such a short amount of time, is so difficult. It's incredible what they've managed to do in just that tiny, tiny amount of time. If you can do something great in 60 seconds, you can do anything, really."